How did Rapa Nui sculptors carve and finish moai statues?

The Rapa Nui people carved the iconic middle-period moai statues using basalt picks to shape the yellow-gray tuff found in the crater walls of the volcano Rano Raraku.1

The carving process followed a specific sequence:
* Initial Shaping: Sculptors completed the front and sides of the statue to a polished finish while the back remained attached to the bedrock.1
* Detachment and Finishing: Once the front was polished, the statue was detached from the rock and moved to the rubble below the quarry, where the back was finished.1
* Final Details: Features such as eye cavities and topknots were added only after the monument was erected at its final destination. The eye cavities were later inlaid with white coral and dark stone disks for pupils.1

It is important to distinguish these large stone monoliths from the small wooden moai figures, such as the moai kavakava and moai paepae, which were carved for different ritualistic and decorative purposes.2